Untitled
by Ozziewozacat
Summary: Just pure humourromance. Nothing exciting. [HexAmber] [PauloLi] [AlexOC].
1. Chapter 1

_A/N: This is my first Alpha Force fanfic, and my first fic of a book. As you can see, it hasn't got a title at the moment…so if you have any ideas on what I can call, please tell me. This'll end up being AmberxHex, PauloxLi, and Alex/OC._

10…9…8…7…6…5…4…3…2…1…

Amber sat counting down the seconds towards midnight. As her digital watch's display changed from 11:59, to 0:00, Amber couldn't help but smile. It was now the first official day of the summer holidays, and she couldn't sleep. She looked down at the sleeping form of her friend, MariAnne, in the bed next to hers.

Aside from Alpha Force, when she lived her relatively normal, quiet life in America, MariAnne was her best friend. MariAnne's long blonde hair was spread out over her pillow, and her breathing was quiet, steady, as it had been for the last hour or so. Amber's uncle, John Middleton, had requested that she and MariAnne had an early night, saying that the sooner she slept, the sooner the morning would arrive.

Amber could understand his meaning, but she was much too excited to sleep. Even with the state-of-the-art air-conditioning whirring quietly to itself as it poured cool air into the room, Amber was much too hot. She was wearing loose cotton pajamas, and she had swapped her usual duvet for a simple sheet, yet still a light sweat formed on her forehead.

_I used to hate my life_, Amber reminisced. She looked back, to a mere three years ago, and thought about what her life was like. Her parents had just died, in what she had thought to be an accidental plane crash on their way to a skiing holiday. At the time, Amber had been staying with her uncle in his large villa.

Her parents' death, to put it bluntly, made her even more of a bitchy, spoilt brat, not caring for anyone, not even herself. She let her diabetes get dangerously out of hand, and was, on many occasions, admitted to hospital after a hypo. Then her uncle booked her up to the month long trip aboard the _Phoenix_, and she had met the other members of Team A, all of whom she despised immediately.

But after being marooned on a desert island with her fellow four members, they had formed the closest bond imaginable, as well as Alpha Force, with John Middleton as their anchor man. And she couldn't have been happier. As well her personality, her outlook at life in general had changed dramatically for the better.

The reason Amber was so excited was because after many long distance phone calls, and a lot of sweet talk to her uncle, he had finally relented, and had allowed Alpha Force stay at the large family home for a whole month. Arriving at midday on July 28th, they were staying until the 29th of August. Her uncle had only let them come because he understood how lonely in the huge house Amber got all by herself, and how much her friends bought out the best in her.

The only other person that knew the truth about Alpha Force was MariAnne, when the other members had given her permission to tell her. She would be staying for a few odd nights during the month, so Amber felt she deserved to know the truth. That, and she hated lying to her. She had told the rest of her friends that they had met on the _Phoenix_ (true) had kept contact by phone, and went on holidays together. (Kinda true.)

She wondered what her friends would think of MariAnne, and what things they would find to do in the month they were staying…

The next thing she knew, it was morning.

As Amber lay awake, the rest of Alpha force had just met up after their flights, and were making their way to the car that would take them to Amber's house. They all looked scruffy and travel-weary, but there was no denying the happiness in their eyes at the prospect of spending a month together, with no one trying to kill them.

There was Alex, blonde hair and grey eyes, the survival expert of the group, from Northumberland, Li, her long black hair in a plait, her oriental face looking drawn and tired, Paulo, a big Argentinean with brown hair and an easy gait, and Hex, a yawning, English boy, with brown hair and bright green eyes. He was carrying a small black case slung over one shoulder, which he was clutching protectively.

Suddenly, a man approached the group, and coughed slightly to attract their attention.

"Whitestone Villa?" He questioned

Alex nodded as he studied the man. He was exactly the type of man that rich people tend to hire. There was nothing…_memorable_. He was reasonably tall, with thinning hair, cut short to hide the grey. He was dressed in an expensive looking, but plain black suit, and his voice sounded just like any other you might hear.

"Follow me" He turned his back on Alpha Force, who blinked one or twice and followed his retreating figure. He led them to a black limousine and gestured at Li, who was in front to get in. He didn't open the door, just walked round to the driver's side and climbed in.

The car journey was almost in silence. All of Alpha Force were too tired to do anything, and yet their bodies wouldn't let them sleep. Paulo grinned and looked around at his three friends, all of which were staring at minor things, like the door handle, or the seat opposite.

"Yoo-hoo, guys?" They all looked up with a start, and glared at Paulo, who had broken two hour long silence.

"What is it?" asked Li.

"We're there" Three heads turned round to look out the limo's tinted windows, and took in their first glance of Whitestone Villa, Amber's house.

The door was opened by a young, attractive lady with black hair in a pony-tail, wearing an apron.

"Hello. I'm taking you're Amber's friends?"

"Yeah, we are. I'm Li, this is Paulo, Alex and Hex" Li pointed to each of them in turn.

"Nice to meet you. I'm Rebekah. If you'd like to follow me…"

The four teenagers followed the maid into a large, modern room, with a desk running along one wall, and squashy black sofas along another. Rebekah gestured towards the seats.

"If you'd like to take a seat, someone will be down shortly" and with that, she left the room, closing the door behind her. Hex raised an eyebrow.

"Someone will be down shortly?" he mimicked. "What is this; a company, or Amber's house?"

"It's both, actually" came a voice from the door. Four heads swiveled round to face the source of the noise. Leaning against the doorway stood a slim, attractive African-American girl, maybe 16, smiling at the group.

"AMBER!"

The girl grinned and made her way over to the group, who stood up.

"Nice to see you again guys"

_A/N: Well, there's a nice boring chapter to start it all off. Hope you liked it! Sorry it was so short…_


	2. Chapter 2

"I've got a friend round" It was fifteen minutes later, and Alpha Force were standing at the foot of a wide marble staircase in the main lobby. Hex still couldn't shake of the feeling that he was a very posh block of offices. Although they were preparing to climb the stairs up to the third floor, where all their bedrooms were situated, four lifts ferried people constantly to other parts of the building, where Amber said the offices were.

"Is it that one you told?" Paulo asked, not really wanting to make up an excuse as to why Amber had four friends round, all with different accents that proved they came from all over the globe.

"Yes, she's the one that knows about Alpha Force. She doesn't know everything though…there are a few details that I missed out."

"Right" they all agreed.

After a long climb, they came out on a corridor, with four doors leading off of it.

"This it my part of the villa." She pointed at the four doors in turn. "My bedroom, my playroom, my bathroom" she paused on the last door. "That one leads to another corridor. That's where you'll be staying. I've persuaded Uncle John to let me and MariAnne share to largest one with Li, and you three will have to share the other two out between you. One will have to have their own room"

"I'll have it" volunteered Hex

"You seem eager" said Li, puzzled

"Have you heard the way Paulo snores?" They all collapsed in laughter, including Paulo, who knew how true this statement was.

"Deal" Amber smiled "Well, I'd better introduce you guys to MariAnne. She's waiting for me to come back and I've been gone for ages. She's a bit shy. She knows what us guys are capable of, and what we've done and stuff"

Alex laughed "I don't blame her" Amber pushed her bedroom door open.

MariAnne was sitting on Amber's huge bed, legs crossed. She looked up and smiled as they all filed in. She looked shy, but friendly.

"Ok, MariAnne, this is Paulo, Li, Hex and Alex" she pointed at them in turn, and they all smiled, trying to put the girl at ease. "Everyone, this is MariAnne"

MariAnne was a slim girl, with big, deep blue eyes. Her blonde hair had natural looking brown streaks down its length, and it came down her back, reaching her waist. She was wearing a pink button-up blouse and cropped cream trousers, and bare feet.

Amber looked round at her friends, who were talking to MariAnne. The previously shy girl was already in animated conversation with Alex. She wondered for a moment, what her and the usually quiet British boy could be talking about, but then she remembered that MariAnne's brother was in the SAS, like Alex's dad was.

She looked at Li's face, then Paulo's, who was yawning widely. Her eyes flicked to Hex, who was lying back on her bed, staring at the ceiling, a glazed over look on his face. Alex had dark rings under his eyes that stood out on his pale skin. They looked exhausted.

"Guys, why don't you go and sleep for a few hours, then I'll wake you up a bit before dinner. You look really tired."

Alpha force looked up. As soon as Amber had made that suggestion, they all realized just how tired they felt.

"Yeah…that's a really good idea." Li yawned. "My bags are in my room right?"

"Yeah, all the luggage is sorted out"

Alex and Paulo stood up, waving to Amber and MariAnne as they joined Li, and walked out of the room.

"Hex?" Hex was still lying down, his eyes now closed, mouth slightly open. Amber smiled.

"Bless him. He's fallen asleep. She shook his shoulder gently and he sat up, blinking.

"Oh, right yeah. I'm gonna go and sleep."

"Alright then. I'll wake you up a bit before dinner, alright?"

Hex mumbled a reply, but Amber didn't catch it before the door closed behind him. Amber smiled and turned to MariAnne.

"What do you think then?"

"Yeah. They're nice. You're really close to them, aren't you?"

"Yeah. You would be too if you were in my place. I'd put my life in their hands without a second thought"

MariAnne smiled warmly. "You like, him don't you?"

"Huh? Like who?"

"You know who I mean. Hex."

"Well, yeah. We're great friends"

"No. You like him more than that" MariAnne grinned

"I DO NOT!" Amber looked shocked

"Whatever"

"I don't" Amber persisted

"Ok. So…if you had to pick between, say…Hex and Paulo, what would you say?"

"No comment" Amber turned away and crossed her arms.

"Come on..." MariAnne coaxed "I'll admit something to you…"

Amber couldn't help herself. She turned around again and eyed her friend.

"What?"

"You tell me first" MariAnne said

"Promise you will tell me?"

"Promise"

"Fine. I guess I do like him. A little bit. Got that? We're much better off as friends than anything else. MariAnne nodded.

"I guess it's my turn now, right?"

"You got it"

MariAnne sighed "Ok. I guess I think you're friend Alex is kinda cute…"

Amber opened her mouth to comment, but MariAnne continued and cut her off.

"I know it seems stupid, I've only known him half an hour or something, but we were talking, and he seems really nice."

Amber grinned. "Well…I'm sure we could find out of he likes you…"

"And how do you propose we do that exactly? And, if you're planning to go and ask him, I get to talk to Hex about you"

"No! You can't do that! Do you realize what that would do!"

"Alright, alright. So what are you planning?"

" A game"

"Of what…?" MariAnne sounded suspicious

"Pandora's Box"

Hex could hear someone calling his name. He didn't know where it was coming from, but it kept getting louder. He looked around for whoever was calling him, but he was alone. Alone…

"For God's sakes Hex, wake up!"

Hex's green eyes snapped open, and found them looking into Amber's large dark ones. He could hear his blood rushing in his ears as he met her gaze, and unwillingly turned away.

"Come on, get off your lazy arse, dinners in 20 minutes."

"Alright, alright, I'm getting up" He swung his legs off the side of the bed and forced himself to stand up. He felt much better that he had a while ago, and his brain didn't hurt as much either. Most of the jet lag had worn off, he assumed.

He was still wearing his jeans and dark green T-shirt that he had traveled in, and he was very well aware of the fact that he needed a shower. Badly. He grabbed his wash bag from the bottom of the bed, and slung it over his shoulder as he searched for some decent clothes to wear to dinner. As he looked, he could feel eyes on him, and he looked round to find Amber looking at him, a curious expression on her face.

"Is there something on my face?" Hex asked, puzzled as to why she had been looking at him.

"No" replied Amber in little more that a whisper. "I'm going to get ready now. I'll see you in a minute." And with that, she stood up and left the room. Hex shrugged, and walked into the bathroom.

Twenty minutes later, six teenagers met at the foot of the flight of steps in the lobby. Their eyes flicked over each other, making sure they had dressed appropriately. The boys wore casual shirts and jeans, MariAnne wore a knee-length navy skirt and a white top, Amber wore jeans and a tight red T-shirt, and Li was wearing a black halter-neck with a white dragon up on side, and black trousers.

"Ready to go?" Amber asked.

"Yeah, sure" Li answered for the rest of the group. As Amber looked round at the faces of her friends, she realized that they looked much better than they had three hours ago. She hoped they were up to her game tonight. He mind flew to the lilac hat box in her room, almost full of folded questions for Pandora's Box.

When they walked into the large dining room, John Middleton was already sitting at the table. He looked up when they entered and smiled warmly at the group. As they approached they table, he stood up and shook the boy's hands, and kissed Li's cheek.

"How are you doing?"

There was a chorus of 'fine thanks' before the door that Paulo assumed led to kitchen, and Rebekah came in, wearing a long black dress, with her wavy hair down loose.

"You've met my secretary?"

Rebekah answered for them "Yes, we met earlier."

"Oh right" and with that, dinner was served.

45 minutes later, everyone had finished eating. They were all relaxed, plates empty and tummies full. Alpha Force hadn't realized how hungry they were until they started eating.

"You what are you planning for later, Amber? It's only 8:00"

"MariAnne and I made some questions for Pandora's box earlier. We thought we could do that, if it's ok with everyone?" Amber looked round, receiving nods all the way until she reached Paulo, who looked confused.

"Pandora's what?" he asked.

"Box. It's a bit like truth and dare, but with out the dares. You have to answer the question that you pick out."

"Alright then. Fine with me" He grinned.

"So it's agreed. Pandora's box it is" Li grinned.


	3. Chapter 3

Now, before you get excited, this isn't actually a chapter. It's an author's plead. Basically, I don't know what to do for the next chapter. It's going to be the Pandora's Box chapter, and I'd like to do it well. I've played it before, but never with guys, and I'm at a loss for questions…

So, if you have any questions at all, PLEASE give them to me, either in a review or by email. C'mon, I need ideas people. Without any, the next chapter just won't get written.

Thanks so much, and to anyone who does give me an idea, they'll get credit for it in the next chapter, when I finally write it. Thanks guys.

See yah! Ozziewozacat

(See, new and improved PenName ;))


	4. Chapter 4

A/N: Well, this took a while…thanks to everyone who gave their ideas for questions, this chapter probably wouldn't have been written. They are:

Numbuh 333 half way 2 hell

Ionalama

Thanks so much guys! Oh, and I think wowee needs a mention, as well. Although I appreciate your review, wowee, I'd like to keep this Paulo/Li. Just because. But you never know, I might just write a little Alex/Li one-shot, because it's a cool couple.

Oh! And, for the sake of this chapter, can we imagine they're neatly sixteen, or something? I'm not sure on their exact ages…but can you really imagine six nearly-adults playing truth or dare? No. Didn't think so.

This probably isn't my best chapter ever, but it's better than nothing, right? So, here we go.

Twenty minutes later, and four people were sitting in a rough circle on the floor of the room the girl were sharing. Even though it was their room, Amber and MariAnne still hadn't arrived. Li leant up against the end of a bed and sighed.

"Where the hell are they? How long does it take to get changed?"

Little did she know, they had been changed for ten minutes already, and were now in the process of trying to extract the box of questions they had hidden earlier. For a while she'd kept it in her room, before they moved to the top of a closet in the hallway.

Which was why Amber was balanced on a chair stretching as much as she could to reach the lilac box. The chair wobbled slightly, and Amber 'eeped' She growled and made one last angry swipe for the box, which came tumbling out of the box, spilling its contents our onto the carpeted floor.

"Damn"

They both knelt down and started to gather up the folded pieces of paper, shoving them quickly back into the box. MariAnne looked up, and caught sight of the four teenagers, one girl and three boys standing just outside the door.

"Little help, guys"

Paulo was looking into the box, with a slightly worried expression on his face.

"Are they all questions? Embarrassing ones?"

"No way. Do you really think we could think of that many?"

Paulo let out a sigh of relief.

Amber laughed. "Most of them are dares"

"I thought you said there were no dares?"

"Well…normally there isn't, but there are six of us playing. We got bored of questions and thought up some dares instead."

"Ok…should we be worried?"

Amber winked. "You never know…"

"Alright, so who's going first?" Amber placed the box down into the middle of the circle, lid on, so no one could see the contents.

When no one volunteered, she just grinned even wider.

"Fine. We'll just have to pick. Paulo."

"What! Why me?"

"Because you've never played before. It's only fair."

He gave her a death glare, but stuck his hand inside the box anyway. His dark eyebrows knitted as he rummaged around inside. Eventually he pulled a folded scrap of paper out. He read it quickly and looked across at Amber.

"I'm not quite sure what doing this would achieve…"

"That's the point. It doesn't achieve anything. It's just amusing for the rest of us."

He shrugged and stood up, moving across to the wardrobe. Opening the door, he crawled inside, very hunched up in the small space.

Amber gave a small smile. "He's got to stay in there until his next turn"

Paulo glared. "Hurry up, please. My back hurts." Shrugging, Hex, the next on the left pulled out a piece of paper. He frowned.

"It's a question."

"Well, go on, read it out then" Li urged.

"If you had a choice, who here would you be most likely to go on a date with?"

From the cupboard, Paulo gave an amused chuckle, knowing what the answer should be. Hex glared at him.

"Are you serious? I have to answer this? Are they all this bad?"

Amber shook her head. "No. They're worse."

"Fine." Here his voice dropped in volume. "Amber."

Four faces lit up in smiles, whereas Amber's flushed brilliantly. She gave a nervous, but not displeased smile, and turned to Li. "You're next."

Li didn't hesitate in picking her task and just raised an eyebrow once she'd read it. "Eat a tablespoon of ketchup? That's not exactly a brilliant dare, is it?"

Amber shrugged. "We were running out of ideas by then. Doesn't matter if it's crap – you still gotta do it."

"Got any ketchup?"

Amber felt under the bed she was leaning against and pulled out a small bottle. She help it up. "Right here. Specially for this very dare."

Her hand disappeared under the bed again and this time she held out a silver tablespoon. She handed both over to Li, who poured a level spoonful out. She grimaced. "I don't even _like _ketchup" she said, and swallowed.

Alex, who had remained silent so far, was actually pretty worried. For the first time, he was glad he didn't fancy anyone on the team – that could be pretty embarrassing if he got asked a question similar to Hex's. But he still didn't really feel ecstatic about having to tell them…things like that.

But when Amber shook the box under his nose, he put his hand inside, wishing for a dare. He unfolded the paper slowly, and let his eyes skim over the words. What the hell?

MariAnne leant over his shoulder. "It says: 'How far have you been with a member of the opposite sex?'"

Amber sniggered slightly. Alex didn't look up from his piece of paper. There wasn't really much to tell. Just kissing…and stuff. This wasn't really the kind of stuff they normally discussed, as a team. Yeah, he spoke to the guys, but all males had to brag, didn't they?

"Well, go on then!" Amber, of course, was getting impatient.

"Uh…kissing. And…stuff. Yeah." He finished lamely.

Li shot him a suspicious glare. "Truthfully?"

He feigned mock hurt. "That is the truth!"

She shrugged and dropped it. "Fine."

As soon as MariAnne unfolded her dare she flushed bright red. She suddedly regretted ever writing that one. She should have known it would backfire on her. Silently, she passed the piece of paper to Alex, who was sitting on her left. His eyes went wide and her coughed lightly. Amber suddenly realized which one MariAnne had picked.

"What? What is it?" Paulo called from the wardrobe.

"I…Uhm…We…" MariAnne stuttered.

"She has to sit on his lap. For a whole turn."

Li cackled. She knew she would probably hate it if it was her, but it wasn't, so she was allowed to laugh. MariAnne fixed her with the most threatening glare she could muster, and feeling sorry for her, Li changed her laugh into a wide smile.

Everyone watched as MariAnne got up and sat – very carefully – in Alex's lap. "You are allowed to breath, you know." Alex muttered a few seconds later. She hadn't moved at all. She gave him a tiny smile and sat so she was comfier. After all, she was going to be there a while if she knew Amber – which she did. She'd slow down the game as much as possible.

She felt around in the box for a few seconds, and unfolded her paper, holding it close to her chest. She almost laughed.

"It's asking if I fancy the person opposite me. And, as stunning as you are, Li, no. I don't."

Li put on a fake pout. "And here I was, thinking you loved me…"

From his forgotten position, Paulo whooped. "I can come out now!"

He took his space in the circle again and with a smile pulled out the next task. "How many people do I fancy at the moment? That's it?" He laughed. "It's easy! One!"

Amber sat up. "Ooh! Who?"

Paulo only smirked. "It doesn't say I have to tell you who."

"That's not fair! Do we know her?"

He nodded. Amber's grin got even bigger. "Then it's easy. We all know"

"Really? We do?" Asked Li.

Amber cocked her head to one side. "Well, maybe not you…" A warning look from Paulo stopped her going any further, and Li just looked confused.

Hex hesitated a lot more this time, and was almost scared to read his card. However, he smiled in relief. "Any mustard?"

Amber nodded and produced it. "Here. You'll have to use the same spoon"

Hex put it into his mouth a swallowed. After a few seconds, his eyes began to water. He flapped his arms around and started fanning his mouth, much to the amusement of the other players. "You didn't tell me it was English mustard!" He forced out.

"You didn't ask" Amber pointed out fairly. They all chuckled – it was kinda funny to watch, after all, even in a sort of sadistic way…

Eventually he calmed down and sent a death glare round the circle. He turned back to Amber. "How come I always get the bad ones?"

She shrugged and motioned to Li to pick a question. She read it quickly and laughed. "All right. Sorry guys." She said with a grin.

"Ten green bottles sitting on the wall, ten green bottles sitting on the wall, and if one green bottle should accidentally fall, there'd be nine green bottles sitting on the wall."

Everyone looked at her in confusion, wondering what the Hell she was doing.

"Nine green bottles sitting on the wall, nine green bottles sitting on the wall, and if one green bottle should accidentally fall, there'd be eight green bottles sitting on the wall. Eight green bottles sitting on the wall, eight green bottles sit – Ow!"

Hex, who was sitting next to her just grinned. "Sorry. But that was really, _really_ annoying."

"Yeah, that was the point. I had to carry on singing until someone hit me."

Hex grinned. "Good. I don't feel as guilty now."

Meanwhile, Alex had opened his task and was staring down at it. He showed it to MariAnne. "Does that mean here, or in general?" He asked.

"Here, I think."

"Oh" He said, and gulped. Of course, he knew the answer. It was just…he'd known her for a day, for God's sake! But if he said Li or Amber, not only would he be lying, but it would make things a little awkward.

"Uh…I guess…You?"

MariAnne couldn't help thinking that the tiny little blush on his cheeks was kinda cute, but she just smiled and tried to keep her own blush to a minimum. The round over, she climbed back to her own seat and pulled out a piece of paper.

"If I had a life changing secret, who would I tell it to first?" She laughed. "Well, that's easy. Amber, of course."

Amber peered into the box. "I think there's only questions left now…anyone who's had a question all ready, skip your turn, okay?"

Li looked around. "Is it only me?"

They nodded and she shrugged, pulling out one of the last remaining cards. "We've already had this one. It's who do I fancy most here."

"No" Amber pointed out. "There's a difference. The other one was talking about who you'd like to _date _most – not who you fancy."

"Yes" Paulo said, impatient for the answer. "That's very nice, but could you just answer the question?"

Li looked up at him, and then back down at the paper. "Fine" She said, addressing the circle. "It's Paulo."

Now, Amber was still expecting this, but she still admired her courage. She wouldn't be able just come out with it like that. If she ever told him…it would be in private. Even though there had been the whole 'date' question. That had sort of made her feel funny inside.

So…he liked her. That's what it had to have meant, right? He wouldn't say he'd want to go on a date with her if he didn't, would he? And he'd looked all embarrassed about it – a teeny little blush on his cheeks.

She took a deep breath. Ok. So she like him, she had to talk to him. He obviously thought he'd done his bit, but answering the question. So, she had to take the invitation. She'd talk to him. Tonight.

So there we go. Sorry it took so damn long, I have no excuse. I hope the length of this chapter makes it up to you. Please review, even though I don't deserve it after all the waiting I put you through. But it would be nice…Please? The more feedback, the sooner the next chapter comes. Got it? Good

Ozziewozacat.


	5. AN

Hey guys...  
It's been a while, right? I'm really sorry about the huge lack of updates. I'm still receiving reviews for this story however... and they're guilt-tripping me into writing some more.  
Let's be honest - this fanfic is terrible. I've re-read it and it embarrasses me to no end. However there will be no editing (at least not for a very long time) because I have better things to be doing. I've moved well away from the land of fanfiction and started concentrating on my own original writing. Nothing's online yet but I think my writing style has improved - it's a lot more mature anyway.  
Sorry this isn't a chapter but I just wanted to let you guys know that one should be on its way soon. I'll try to do in the next couple of days so bear with me. Thanks for all your support and I hope you'll forgive the massive wait.


	6. Chapter 5

Right so here it is. Once again I'm so sorry about the wait. Please review and tell me what you think... Hopefully the wait won't be so long next time.

The six of them sat in a circle, every single pair of eyes drawn to the three folded pieces of paper in the bottom of the box. They looked innocent enough, certainly... but who knew what humiliation and torture the minds of Amber and MariAnne had conjured up for them?

"How're we gonna pick who gets them?" Li asked nervously. She'd already been put through the torture of having to admit liking Paulo... She wasn't sure how much she could handle. However... she wasn't oblivious to the fact that Paulo was sitting slightly closer to her before, close enough so their shoulders brushed together when one of them moved. And was it her imagination or did he really keep looking over at her?

"That's easy" Amber grinned. "We spin a bottle". She'd already mentioned that the questions or dares left were the worst in the whole lot. No one was sure how she'd managed to keep these to last, but she'd done it and they were all worried.

Possibly most worried was Hex. He wasn't stupid enough to underestimate Amber... and knew that if these last three were the worst... then they would be in no way innocent. And he really really really didn't want to get one of them.

Slowly and dramatically Amber reached under her bed and pulled out an empty Coke bottle, as if she had been planning this all along. And knowing her, she most likely had. Placing it in the middle of the circle, she looked round at everyone's faces to make sure they were all paying close attention and spun it.

Hex felt like the whole world was moving in slow motion. Of all the dangerous things he'd done as part of Alpha Force, why did he remember never feeling this scared? The bottle began to slow down... and it was just coming towards him. He wondered if anyone would notice if he blew it along to the next person. But no, by the time he'd decided that at least someone would notice and accuse him of cheating, it had stopped. Directly in front of him.

As he reached for the box, he didn't miss the look of relief on the other's faces. He scowled as he picked a folded piece of paper up. Why him? If this was embarrassing then he would actually kill Amber.

Well... maybe that was a bit extreme. But he'd definitely glare at her for a bit. 

With more than a little bit of trepidation he unfolded the torture that he was sure he would have picked. 

Amber watched as Hex's eyebrows rose as he read whatever he'd got. As the author of the three remaining dares, she knew it could be one of three things. None of which he'd be particularly happy about. 

"What?!" he spluttered. "This isn't fair!" He slowly read it out the other players so they could understand how cruel this was and help him get out of having to do it. "Seven minutes of heaven" he read "with the person the bottle lands on."

To his surprise, no one person exclaimed how unfair it was. In fact, quite the opposite. They all just laughed. Especially Amber. "Go on then!" she grinned "spin the bottle again. I'll tell you what - just 'cos I'm nice I'll let you re-spin if it lands on a guy."

"Thanks" Hex commented sarcastically. In one swift movement (he thought he might as well get it over with) he reached out and spun the empty bottle. He shut his eyes as soon as he let go of it, hoping against hope that it wouldn't be... her. He didn't open them again until he heard the gasps and giggles of the other players. And the growl of one certain person.

Yes. The bottle had landed on Amber. And she was not happy about it.

Hex was slightly scared to meet her eyes... but when he did look up he was surprised to see she looked just as awkward as he felt. They looked at each other, both not sure what to say. Amber couldn't exactly refuse to do the dare seeing as she'd written. God, stupid game kept backfiring on her.

It was Paulo who broken the tension. He coughed lightly. "What is this... seven minutes in heaven... thing?"

Li took great delight in explaining it to him. "Well..." she said, with a wicked smile Amber's direction. She thought Amber deserved every ounce of embarrassment that she was going to get. "They have to shut themselves in a closet. For seven minutes."

Paulo still looked confused however. "But... why? What is the point of that?"

Li continued her explanation. "And while they're in this closet... they can do what they like. The closeness is great for building sexual tension... " she trailed off. Paulo's face had lit it up, as had every other face in the circle. 

"Not like those two need anymore of that..." Alex muttered under his breath. Of course everyone heard and he received too identical looks for Amber and Hex - a mix of shock and embarrassment. Hex's face was bright red and even Amber's dark cheeks were decorated with a tint of pink.

MariAnne jumped into save him from the evils of their glares. "Well go on then you two - we'll start timing when the door shuts."

Amber stood up first. She was determined to just get it over and done with. She'd just sit very still in the closet. Seven minutes wasn't a long time, was it? No. She'd be fine. 

Following her example, Hex got to his feet. Standing up he was nearly six foot - a good six inches taller than Amber. He was going to be very uncomfortable in this cupboard... 

The closet that had been designated was the very one that had hidden the box of questions earlier. It was supposed to hold spare bedclothes and things like that. However, for this very dare Amber and Marianne had emptied it out the day before and shoved all the stuff into a spare room. Now all it held was one duvet folded on the bottom to provide some comfort for the occupants. _I didn't really think this one out _Amber thought with a sigh. She'd never expected it was going to be her in the closet. Especially with Hex... _This is going to be awkward..._

Climbing into the closet was the worst bit. Hex got in first and held out his arms to help her in. Cautiously she crawled in on top of his, settling herself in his lap. They both scowled up at the four euphoric faces looking at them. Why the hell were they finding this so funny? 

MariAnne held her wrist up to watch the second hand on her watch. As soon as it reached the number 12, she looked up. "Ready... steady... go!" and shut the closet door.

It was very dark. That was the first problem. She held her hand up and couldn't see it - let alone Hex. He was sitting very still underneath her. Unnaturally still. As if he were scared to move. She also noticed that his breath was coming quite fast; she could feel it against her ear and it was shallow but warm and it sent shivers down her spine.

Oh god this was not good. She was pressed up against his warm body... his chest hard from working out - Alpha force was hard work and they all had to stay in great shape - and the smell of him was making her feel heady. They were very very close (it was hard not to be in the tiny closet) and as her eyes adjusted to the darkness she could see his eyes were pressed tightly closed and a look of total concentration was written across his face.

He looked like he was fighting the same urge as she was... the urge to kiss her.

Hex's thoughts kept following the same pattern. It went mostly like _must not kiss her... if I close my eyes I can pretend she's not here... oh God she smells so good... must not kiss her... _

The whole 'pretending she's not there' thing didn't really work too well. It was quite difficult - she was sitting on top of him. Although she was by no means heavy, her weight was there and he felt every little movement she made. Sweet torture was probably the best way to put it.

"How long has it been?" she whispered, wary of the people that were bound to be waiting outside the door. Hex pressed the button on his watch that would make the face light up. 

"Just over a minute" he reported. They both wondered how they could only have been in there for a minute... it felt like at least half an hour...

Amber only began to breath again when the light from Hex's watch had gone out. It had illuminated his face and she'd been startled by his good looks. His features had been highlighted and the combination of his gorgeousness and their proximity had made it very difficult not to lean and...

No! She couldn't think about that. Had to think about something other than how his lips would feel against hers... the way his breath would catch if she slipped a hand under his shirt...

Outside the closet the hallway was empty. As soon as the door had shut the others had crept away. They'd waiting long enough for something - ANYTHING - to happen between Amber and Hex and they were not going to interrupt it when it finally did.

"I don't really want to hear any dodgy noises, thank you very much" commented Li dryly. "Just because we've been waiting for this forever doesn't mean I want to know all the details..."

No one replied, thinking along the same lines. Except Paulo, whose delayed comment was "what dodgy noises?"

Needless to say, that didn't get a reply either.

Hex was uncomfortable. He was too tall for this stupid closet and was sliding forwards across the floor. This meant Amber and himself were soon going to be laying down and that might make the 'not kissing her' plan even more difficult. He shifted slightly to bring them to a more upright position... but instead they ended up sliding further down the wall... to the point where Amber was laying on top of him.

He let out an 'oof' as she landed top of him, and she a small squeak. Her eyes were wide and he'd already opened his mouth to apologize a million times and work out the best way of sitting up again. Her smile caught him unawares, however. 

"Are you going to pretend that was an accident?" she teased, her warm breath against his cheek.

"It was!" he exclaimed "I was trying-" he was cut off.

"Yeah... of course it was. Just admit it was to get me into a better position to kiss me"

_What the hell?! _Amber thought _What am I talking about?! _It seemed that her mouth had decided to ignore her brain and was now dealing with the situation by itself. Without the help of rational thought. 

Hex's expression was nearly worth the embarrassment though - his mouth had dropped open and his eyes were wide. He looked as if he didn't know whether to smile or to pinch himself.

Amber - whose brain still hadn't got control of her mouth - took advantage of his disbelief, lowered her head a little and kissed him.

"Has it been seven minutes yet?" Alex asked, not sure when they'd started counting and how much time had passed since then. 

"Yep" MariAnne answered "Over. We're nearing ten."

Li looked up from the magazine she was reading. She'd found it under Amber's bedside table, open to an article titled 'Ten signs he's crazy about you'. She was puzzled as to why Amber read this sort of thing but was still oblivious to Hex's obvious affections. It was sickening how clichéd it all was. 

"Do you think we should go get them? I mean... they'll get a bit suspicious if we leave them there too long..." she said.

Alex's face lit up . "Yeah... but let's creep up on them and catch them red-handed. They must at least be kissing by now and they'll deny it all if we don't see it ourselves".

The way they crept down the corridor was almost comical. They were all in socks and trying to make as little noise as possible. Li was the first to reach the door to the closet and she waited until the others caught up before she moved again. They stood around the door so they would all be able to see what was going on when it was opened. Li held up three fingers and dropped them down one by one, mouthing the numbers as she went.

Just as the last finger dropped Alex reached forward for the handle and yanked it open.

To reveal a very vertical Hex with Amber on top of him, a leg either side of his hips. His arms had looped around her waist and one hand had disappeared up the back of her shirt. And they seemed very absorbed in their kiss. So absorbed in fact that they didn't notice the fact that the door had been opened and they now had an audience. 

Alex coughed lightly and the couple broke apart. Flushed bright red, Hex gave a sheepish grin. "Oh... hey guys..."

"Would you like to carry on with the game now? Or shall we leave you there for a while...?" was the only comment, from Li.

Hex opened his mouth to reply but Amber cut him off "No, we'll come and play". As much as she was enjoying herself, the last two dares were too great to miss. As long as she didn't have to take part in another. 

Now that Amber and Hex had successfully completed their dare, they were excluded from the next turn. As the others took their places around the bottle, small giggles escaped every now and again. They were all trying to keep a straight face to give to save their embarrassment but sometimes it was too difficult to hold it back.

Amber and Hex, however, sat apart from each other, both feeling a little awkward about where the two of them stood. They needed to talk about what had just happened and what it meant but of course there were other people were there and they'd get ideas of the two of them went off to another room. The talk would have to wait.

The bottle was spun and landed on Paulo. With a grimace (who knew what Amber's mind had conjured up? Based on the events during the game it couldn't be anything good) he picked out a piece of paper. "No way!" was his only comment.

A/N: So. There we go. Again, really really sorry about the huge wait. Thanks to everyone who reviewed and I hope you will again...

Massive thanks (and credit) go to TotallyBookWorm for:  
1) The kick up the backside to write this chapter and  
2) The idea for the 'seven minutes in heaven' dare. I'd never heard of it before and so I'm sorry if I got it wrong... but I think that was the basic gist of it, yes?

Because of this, this chapter is dedicated to her (I'm assuming you're a girl - huge apologies if you're not).

Oh one last thing - I NEED IDEAS FOR THE NEXT TWO DARES OR QUESTIONS. So... two really good dares that could involve Paulo and Li or Alex and MariAnne. Nothing too explicit though please. The more I get, the faster the next chapter will be!


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